The traditional Irish Stew gets an infusion of flavor with this recipe using tender pork, earthy caraway seeds, and Irish stout in a simmering broth that thickens as it cooks thanks to a surprising method: cooking with the pork bones!
Course Main Course
Cuisine Irish
Keyword pork, stew
Prep Time 15 minutesminutes
Cook Time 3 hourshours
Total Time 3 hourshours15 minutesminutes
Servings 8
Calories 311kcal
Ingredients
3 ½ to 4poundsbone-in pork shoulder blade steak, or about 3 pounds of cubed meat plus bones
¼cupall purpose flour
2 ½teaspoonskosher salt, divided
2teaspoonsfreshly ground black pepper, divided
3tablespoonscanola oil
3medium yellow onions, chopped (about 5 cups)
½poundbrown mushrooms, quartered
1tablespoonMcCormick caraway seeds
1 ½cupsIrish Stout
1 ½cupswater
2McCormick bay leaves
4carrots, peeled and sliced about ¼" thick
½poundbaby Yukon Gold or small red potatoes, quartered
¼cupchopped Italian flat leaf parsley
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 300°F.
Trim the bones from the pork shoulder steaks and set aside. Trim the fat from the meat (and discard) and cut the pork into 1-inch cubes.
In a gallon-size resealable freezer bag, combine the flour, 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Add the pork and shake to coat.
Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large oven-proof Dutch oven over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add half of the meat to the pot so it covers the bottom of the pot evenly and cook for 2-3 minutes before moving so that the sides brown nicely for a total of about 8-10 minutes. Transfer the meat to a bowl, add another tablespoon of oil to the pot and finish browning the rest of the meat then transfer that to the bowl as well.
Reduce the heat to medium and add the last tablespoon of oil to the Dutch oven and heat until it's shimmering. Add the onion and mushrooms and cook until the vegetables just begin to soften, about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Add the caraway seeds and the 1 ½ teaspoons of kosher salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper and cook for another 2 minutes or so.
Add the raw pork bones to the Dutch oven and top with the cooked pork chunks. Add the Irish Stout, water and bay leaves then raise the heat and bring to a boil, and stir and scrape any browned bits from the bottom of the pot.
Cover the Dutch oven with the lid and transfer to the oven to cook for 1 hour.
Remove the pot from the oven, give it a stir if you'd like, and add the carrots and potatoes, cover again and put back in the oven for another 1 to 1 ½ hours until the carrots and potatoes are cooked through and the sauce has thickened.
Remove the pot from the oven and the remove the bones from the stew. Add the parsley and stir everything together, taste for seasoning and add more salt or pepper if needed. Serve hot.
Notes
The stew can be refrigerated for 3-4 days and frozen in a freezer-safe container for up to 2 months.